One Lovely Blog Award

I want to thank my friend and fellow blogger David Brazzeal at Pray Like A Gourmet for honoring Not Dark Yet with the One Lovely Blog Award. David uses his blog to share "Creative Ways to Feed Your Soul." We bloggers are always glad when people find time to read what we write and post, and who doesn't like a little recognition now and then? It seems that there are certain rules that accompany this award, so I will list them and then share my response (bending them a bit as you will see).

RULES OF THE AWARD:

   1. Thank the person who nominated you for the award (check)

   2. Display the banner/sticker/logo on your blog (check)

   3. Share 7 facts or things about yourself (coming up)

   4. Nominate 15 bloggers that you admire and inform nominees by commenting on

       their blog (see below)

Seven Things about Myself

A few years ago I was trying to write a brief bio for a journal that was publishing an essay I had written. I studied over it, whittled it down to a brief paragraph, and had my wife read over it. “Wait a minute,” she said, “This is just cut-and-dried information, what you think you would like those folks to see. I’ll write a bio about the real Charlie Kinnaird.” With that she sat down and typed out the following paragraph, ad lib, off the top of her head. I have enumerated her words to six traits, so I’ll have to add a seventh to fulfill the rules of the award.

As told by my wife:

   1.  Charlie Kinnaird is a very private man who asks no questions and gives no answers.

   2. He is often taken to bread making and brandy; music and medicine; lawn mowing

        and books; long soaks and the Eucharist (not necessarily in that order).

   3. He likes his religions varied, his friends intellectual, his dogs big, and his barbeque

        sliced.

   4. He ponders deep thoughts and honors honorable men.

   5. His nature leans toward loyalty and his world view leans toward the cock-eyed side.

   6. He fancies himself a word specialist and enjoys stringing words together which he

       will sometimes submit for publication in worthy literary journals. This brings much

       pleasure to many.

And my own seventh thing:

   7. I try to listen to my wife, though she may not think so at times. She is the one, after

       all, who suggested to me that I ought to write a blog.

Bloggers that I Admire

I’m bending the rules a bit on this one. I’m listing 15, but naming five. I have a long Reading List on my blogroll. This gives me a chance to see a variety of blogs each day as they are posted by the respective bloggers. Some are news/current event blogs, some literary, some spiritual, some are personal essay blogs recounting events in their lives. Some bloggers I have enjoyed have slacked off to very few postings, and some post daily. These are the 15 blogs that rise to the top of the list, but 15 awards is a lot. From these 15, I am selecting the first five for the One Lovely Blog award, but all of these I have found worth a visit:

1. Spiritually Speaking – Jane Philips brings psychology, spirituality, and a southern style together in her daily blogs
2. The Stairway to Nowhere – Taylor Field (author, pastor and director of Graffitti Ministries in New York City’s Lower East Side) brings coffee, spirituality, and hope to his blog posts
3. Life 101 – Rick Watson is a journalist, writer, and singer/songwriter who speaks directly about life from his downhome front porch perspective
4. Transformation Information – Jilda Watson (Rick’s wife) is a yoga teacher and singer/songwriter. She says, “deep inside you know the answer, your heart don't give bad advice"
5. Overcoming Cancer – Davy Campbell is a nurse practitioner and a personal colleague who has written about his ordeal with cancer in A Place I Didn't Want To Go: My Victory Over Cancer. He continues to offer inspiration from his unique vantage point as a blogger and public speaker. 
6. Afroculinaria – Michael Twitty is a remarkable fellow.  He is a culinary historian who brings the recipes of his slave ancestors to life, he teaches Judaic studies, and with his essays he brings an important perspective that white Southerners like me need to hear (as do all Americans, really). “To honor the food past and provide for the food future is what Michael calls, culinary justice.”
7. Tim Lennox.com – Tim has a long career in local radio and television.  Born in The Bronx, he has called Alabama home since 1976. Tim brings interesting news items to the fore with his daily blog entries.
8. Head and Heart – Roger Lovette, retired Baptist minister and former pastor of Birmingham’s Baptist Church of the Covenant, always brings a thoughtful, human, and humane perspective to important life issues.
9. The New Word Mechanic – Joseph Saling is a poet and editor (as he describes it, “word mechanic, or ink monkey”). He brings thoughtful original poetry to his blog.
10. Gary Presley – Gary Presley, author of Seven Wheelchairs: A Life beyond Polio brings essays from a life perspective that we can all benefit from. 
11. One Cannot Have Too Large a Party – Penelope Nash is an Episcopal minister who brings photography, prayer, and celebration to her blog each day.
12. Imprints of Light – “Photographs and Thoughts by Daniel Owen, Anglican Minister and Amateur Photographer.” Daniel blogs from Ireland, and his photos are always worth viewing.
13. Darvish – Irving Karchmar  is a poet, writer and a Sufi practitioner. I find it enriching to get a view from his perspective.
14. The Velveteen Rabbi – Following Rabbi Rachel Barenblat gives me some clues and glimpses into the practice of Judaism.
15. Roger McGuinn’s Folk Den – Roger McGuinn (The Byrds, The New Christy Minstrels) acts as a folk music historian, bringing examples of folk music from historical periods and offering a brief background for each piece.

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